Part XII, Section I: General Appellate Procedures

Updated: June 5, 2025

CONTENTS

  1. Introduction
  2. Introduction to the Appellate Committee and Appellate Steering Committee
  3. Procedures for Constituting Appellate Hearing Panels
  4. Training of Appellate Committees
  5. General Procedural Guidance for Faculty Appellate Matters
  6. Annual Reports

I. Introduction

Faculty Appellate processes are governed by POL06.35.04 Faculty Appellate Provisions (Implementing Processes for Sections 603, 604, 605, and 607 of The Code), hereinafter the “Policy” and REG06.35.05 Regulation on Faculty Appellate Provisions (Implementing Processes for Sections 603, 604, 605, and 607 of The Code), hereinafter the “Regulation”, which are in turn governed by UNC Policy Manual and Code 100.1 Chapter VI – Academic Freedom and Tenure, and the associated policy and regulations:

In the event of any inconsistency between the terms of the East Carolina University Faculty Manual and the ECU policy, the ECU policy shall control. In the event of an inconsistency between the terms of either the East Carolina University Faculty Manual or the ECU regulation and/or policy and the UNC Policy Manual and Code policies and regulations, the UNC Policy Manual and Code policies and regulations shall control.

In accordance with ECU Regulation 06.35.05, the East Carolina University Faculty Manual shall contain hearing procedures for the Faculty Appellate provisions.

These procedures endeavor to provide the applicable supporting protocols and processes for faculty matters proceeding under the Policy and Sections 603, 604, 605, and 607 of The Code, and are intended to be read to supplement to the applicable POL06.35.04 with specific procedures necessary to support the faculty appellate review. This Part XII presents the relevant procedures below, beginning with information applicable to the selection of the Faculty Appellate Committee and Appellate Steering Committee, and then addressing procedures applicable to each faculty process under the four types of Faculty Appellate matters.

II. Introduction to the Appellate Committee and Appellate Steering Committee

The Faculty Appellate Committee is a standing committee of the Faculty Senate and serves as a pool for populating the various hearing panels necessary for the operation of the four appellate processes (Hearing, Due Process, Reconsideration, and Grievance) under The Code. The Appellate Committee is made up of permanently tenured or probationary tenure-track voting faculty holding no administrative title. The Faculty Appellate Steering Committee is a subcommittee of the Appellate Committee which serves as the primary committee responsible for initial handling of all appellate matter submitted under The Code, including evaluating any jurisdictional or other initial policy review, and the formal processing of newly received appellate matters until assigned to an established hearing panel.

At its initial organizational meeting each year, the Appellate Committee will elect a steering committee of four individuals, each individual committee member is responsible for taking the lead in processing requests for hearings before one of the four respective types of appellate panels: hearing appellate, due process appellate, reconsideration appellate, and grievances appellate. These individuals will be designated as the “appellate chair” for appeals in their respective areas. Once constituted, the steering committee will elect an Appellate Steering Committee chair and secretary.

The Appellate Steering Committee chair, the appellate chair, and the appellate panel chair provide procedural information to the grievant and respondent(s). When POL06.35.04 and the East Carolina University Faculty Manual are silent on a matter of procedure, the Appellate Steering Committee will render the decision on how to proceed and forward it to the chair of the faculty to confirm in consultation with the Faculty Governance Committee.

An Appellate Committee member who becomes a grievant or respondent while serving will be replaced by the usual procedure for vacancies between annual elections and cannot serve on the Appellate Committee for the period of one three-year term from the date of the final decision on that appeal.

III. Procedures for Constituting Appellate Hearing Panels

After the Appellate Steering Committee receives an appellate matter from a faculty member seeking review under one of the established appellate processes under ECU’s POL06.35.04, and upon confirmation by the Appellate Steering Committee that the matter is within the proper jurisdiction of one of the four appellate processes, the Appellate Steering Committee must establish a hearing panel for review of the pending faculty appellate matter. The procedures below establish the method and process for hearing panel selection.

To determine panelists for appellate hearing panels, at the beginning of each academic year, the Appellate Steering Committee will develop a rank order for all members of the Appellate Committee by random lottery. Individuals will be asked to serve on panels in order of lottery rank and availability for a hearing date, except when disqualified because of a conflict of interest or not selected based on inappropriate rank for the process in question. It shall be considered a conflict of interest under these procedures for any cases in which Appellate Committee members are from either the grievant’s or respondent’s relevant department, unit, college, or school, or with whom either the grievant or respondent has had an amorous relationship, or is related by blood, law, or marriage (as defined in UNC Policy Manual 300.4.2 and 300.4.2.1[G]). As such, in these situations the individual will not be eligible to serve on the appellate hearing panel. Other conflicts of interest may also arise, and the Appellate Steering Committee shall determine, in its discretion, whether the individual remains eligible to serve on the appellate hearing panel.

Individuals will not be asked to serve on a second panel for 12 months until all eligible Appellate Committee members have already served, unless otherwise ruled out by conflicts of interest, at which time the Appellate Steering Committee will return to the top of the ranked list and proceed through the Appellate Committee membership again in the same order.

The specified appellate chair will assemble a panel of five regular members and one alternate based on the random lottery rank order of Appellate Committee members. The names of the parties will be shared with the assembled panel so those with a conflict of interest may be identified and the potential appellate hearing panel member may recuse themselves. The appellate chair will then notify the parties with the names of the panel members and provide the deadline by which either party may request panel members be recused for conflict of interest. Parties should use the Request for Recusal Form to submit their recusal requests.

If the panel member declines recusal, the established hearing panel, including the alternate, shall determine obligatory recusal by majority vote (with the member in question not participating in the vote). The recused panel member will be replaced by the alternate, and another alternate will be appointed by the appellate chair. Once established, the appeal panel will elect a chair and secretary, and follow the appropriate provisions, detailed below, for the specific type of appeal files. The alternate is a member of the established panel and can be consulted on procedural matters brought to the panel but will only vote if they are serving in place of a panel member. After the hearing, the alternate will only participate if they served in place of a panel member at any point during the hearing. Otherwise, the alternate is dismissed after the conclusion of the hearing and will not participate in the writing of the report.

IV. Training of Appellate Committees

Shortly after the organizational meeting of the Appellate Committee, the Appellate Steering Committee shall be trained, as provided by Section 2.6 of the Policy, to perform their roles within each appellate process. This training involves an overview of all the appeal processes and procedures for initial review of a petition for redress/request for review of a decision and formation of panels for each type of appeal. Panel trainings are conducted after the formation of a panel and are tailored to the appeal type.

V. General Procedural Guidance for Faculty Appellate Matters

  1. Grievant and Respondent
    As defined in Section 2.2 of POL06.35.04 Faculty Appellate Provisions (Implementing Processes for Sections 603, 604, 605, and 607 of The Code), a Grievant is any faculty member who initiates one of the four Faculty Appellate processes described this Policy, and the Respondent is the person(s) whose action is the subject of the process initiated by the Grievant. Collectively, the grievant and respondent[s] may be referred to as the “parties”. For information on the Grievant and Respondent, please see the Policy.
  2. In-Person Hearings
    Hearings are conducted in-person, unless a request for a virtual hearing is approved in advance by the applicable faculty committee. Exceptions to the in-person hearing requirement may result from circumstances such as: one or more of the hearing participants obtaining an accommodation pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or extended public emergencies that may result in significant delays or postponement of hearing date (e.g. extended closure of campus buildings due to damage from a hurricane or significant curtailment of in-person activities due to global pandemic). In the case that one or more of the hearing participants is granted exception, the hearing will be conducted virtually for all participants.
  3. Communication Among the Parties and Committees
    Except during the hearing itself, the parties are prohibited from engaging with the Appellate Steering Committee, the panel members, and witnesses of the opposing party, with the exception of requests related to procedural process.
  4. Calculation of Dates and Deadlines
    When calculating time for compliance under these procedures, exclude the starting date, count every day including weekends and holidays, and include the last day unless it falls on a weekend or holiday, in which case the deadline extends to the next business day. 
  5. Procedural Questions and Resources
    If a faculty member is unsure of their options for appeal or have questions about the process, they should consult with the Chair of the Faculty.

    To request an extension of time from the Appellate Steering Committee of appeal panel, please submit the Request for Extension Form.

VI. Annual Reports

Annually, the Faculty Senate Office will write a report specifying the number of each type of appeal, the outcomes ensuring that confidentiality is kept, and the duration of the process, as well as any other concerns. The report will be submitted to the Faculty Governance Committee for review at the beginning of the fall semester.

Faculty Senate Resolution #25-55, June 2025.